The Village’s Bill Field and Haben Abraham Honored as Family Champions

Posted by communications57, Community Contributor

Bill Field (far right) and Haben Abraham (second from right) were honored as Family Champions by CCFSA. Also pictured: Henry Burgos, The Village VP of HR; Galo Rodriguez, The Village president & CEO; Omar Crosby and Abeba Alemayho

Bill Field (far right) and Haben Abraham (second from right) were honored as Family Champions by CCFSA. Also pictured: Henry Burgos, The Village VP of HR; Galo Rodriguez, The Village president & CEO; Omar Crosby and Abeba Alemayho (Posted by communications57, Community Contributor)

Community Contributor communications57

Board member Bill Field and clinician Haben Abraham were honored recently as Family Champions by the Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies (CCFSA).

Bill Field of Monroe has been an active and engaged member of the Board of Directors for The Village for Families & Children since 2011. He has lent his professional expertise in communications and brand positioning - garnered through 26 years as a leader of Mintz & Hoke and now as principal of FieldActivate - to The Village.

As Board member and chair of the Communications & Marketing Committee, Bill has helped to raise the visibility of The Village as a thought leader, a trusted and expert information resource, and a valued partner. He has taken the time to understand The Village and its work in detail in order lead appropriate and accurate message development that has enabled the agency to take advantage of partnership, funding and publicity opportunities. He has led the development of a comprehensive branding and communications campaign and has also supported many of The Village's fundraising activities as an event sponsor and participant.

"We are grateful for Bill's leadership, selfless contributions of time and considerable talent, and his steadfast and ardent support of The Village," said Galo Rodriguez, The Village president and CEO.

Haben Abraham of Hartford is a true "hero" to the families in her work with the intensive home-based program, Multi-Dimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) at The Village. MDFT is an intensive, home-based substance abuse family therapy program that works with adolescents and their families from Hartford who are at risk of being removed from their homes and placed in residential or correctional facilities due to their inability to function within the family and community setting.

Haben has been recognized not only by her colleagues and supervisors, but also by the MDFT model developer Dr. Howard Liddle. Haben is humbled by these accolades, which demonstrates that she does not do this work for personal recognition, but because of her genuine compassion and desire to help families stabilize and emotionally reconnect despite past hurts or complications.

Haben gives adolescents a voice to express themselves in ways that people begin to listen, she empowers parents, grandparents and caretakers to not lose hope. Most of all, she is able to help families recognize the love and connectedness they still have with each other, which drives the positive changes within the family structure.

"Haben has been the contributing force, along with the families, to keep them together within the community when no one else believed in them," said Sandy Kyriakopoulos, senior director of early childhood and psychology. "This is something that textbooks or graduate school cannot teach us. This is something that comes from within, something unique in Haben's heart."

Each year, The Village, as a member of the Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies, nominates a member of its board and staff to be recognized as Family Champions. These individuals are honored for consistently demonstrating a commitment to empowering families and building strong communities.

About The Village:For more than 200 years, The Village for Families & Children has been working to build a community of strong, healthy families who protect and nurture children. We fulfill this mission by providing a continuum of behavioral health treatment and support services for children and adults, including parenting education classes, a nationally accredited preschool, outpatient mental health therapy, substance abuse treatment, intensive residential treatment, and foster care and adoption. For more information, visit www.thevillage.org or call 860-236-4511.

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